. -- syria. all of this is clearly within our national security interest. i do not support the use of u.s. forces on the ground and syria, but i believe the u.s. can and should take more concrete steps to demonstrate support for the transition. "we cannot predict exactly what a new steering government would look like, we can encourage moderate actors to take center stage and emphasize the importance of the process, the process of building institutions, electing new leaders, and bring together series of different backgrounds to pursue a common goal, peace and representative government. this is a goal worthy of supporting. i hope the u.s. will demonstrate our commitment to these core principles in the weeks and months ahead. i know we are short on time. thank you for your attention. god bless you. thank you. [applause] >> senator casey, thank you for your remarks. they could not be more timely, urgent, or compelling. just this week alone, 850 people have been killed by bashar al-assad. we face the